Posted by
emjayne on Monday, May 05, 2008 3:35:22 PM
Got my latest issue of Imprimis and it has an adaptation of a speech by John Bolton. Imprimis is a publication from Hillsdale College and usually has an article by a conservative. John Bolton was the Rep. to the United Nations that the Democrats tried hard to prevent.
One of the things he talks about is "norming"...."the idea that the U.S. should base its decisions on some kind of international consensus, rather than making its decisions as a constitutional democracy." A quote from a professor from a major European university: "The problem with the United States is its devotion to its Constitution over international norms." (That's a problem???)
The U.N. has already decided the question of the death penalty. In this country we are still debating it and some states feel one way and others the other way. Members of the U.N. expect our country to go by U.N. rules, not our own.
They have also passed resolutions about gun control and Bolton said "we were not going to sign on to any international agreement that prohibited private ownership of guns." The fact that we have a Constitution that precludes any such restriction was treated in the U.N. as "an entirely specious notion.
So... they are perfectly capable of "passing resolutions about the death penalty and gun control" it can't agree to "a definition of terrorism that would enable it to denounce terrorism."
"So in all the areas where the U.N. shouldn't be involved---issues best left to sovereign countries---it is very successful in passing judgment, especially when it can spit in the eye of the U.S. But in the one area where the U.N. could be of most use in promoting international peace, it has failed completely. So much for 'norming'."
He goes on to discuss the "oil-for-food scandal", says it is not a unique incident. The U.N. Budget Committee rejected an effort to reform by a margin of about two to one. The countries voting in favor of these reforms contribute over 90% of the U.N.'s budget...the countries voting against them contribute under 10%.
They tried to reform the U.N. Human Rights Commission. It was so weakened by the time it got to a vote that the U.S. voted against it.
Bolton doesn't believe we should get out but we should "change the arrangement by which financing of the U.N. is mandatory." "The United States should pay for what it wants and insist that it get what it pays for."
I have seen signs that some on the Supreme Court think we should go by international law and I thought that was a bad idea then. And then Kerry seemed to think we should go by some kind of "global test" and that was one reason I thought he would not be a good Pres.
It will be interesting to see if this comes up in the coming campaign.